Second Chances
by ebharmony
Summary: Severus begs Lily for forgiveness to rekindle their friendship, with help from unlikely Marauders. Starts when Harry/twin is born. Eventually Severus/Lily pairing. Light vs. Dark showdown. Light bashing. Will be a long series! M rating for language and future chapters.


**Author's Note #1:** Hello there! This is my new Harry Potter series that I'm starting up on. This is probably the craziest Harry Potter series I've thought up of so far, so please enjoy this first chapter. This will eventually become a Lily/Snape story and I don't have any pairings for characters yet because I want the words to flow from the keyboard. I would also like to mention that I'm a huge fan of Lemony Snicket, so if you see any references from A Series of Unfortunate Events, it is intended!

_Maybe we'll meet again, when we are slightly older and our minds less hectic, and I'll be right for you and you'll be right for me. But right now, I am chaos to your thoughts and you are poison to my heart._ - Anonymous

- Chapter 1: The Bad Beginnings -

Severus Snape leered from the shadows of St. Mungo's maternity ward, keeping watchful eye on the children that were going to be on born on the ominous day of July 31st. He was sent there by the Dark Lord himself to spy on the future child that would bring his downfall. It had been hours, but Snape had not moved a muscle from beneath the invisible cloak, even when a very tired nurse had bumped into him and decided that an invisible mass in the ward was not worth looking into. The sloppiness of sleep deprivation does that to everyone apparently.

He wrinkled his nose at the thought of such carelessness, but continued to stand guard. A day of standing was much more appealing than what he would have to witness if he stayed for Peter Pettigrew's punishment. The man was going to die tonight because Dumbledore revealed him to be the rat within the Order. That meant, the dark side had lost valuable mole within the Order of the Phoenix. Voldemort was less than please with this and decided that his followers needed a lesson in keeping their secrets closer to them. A shiver went through Severus's spine as he mentally pictured the meeting. The Dark Lord always used these meetings to train his death eaters for future torturings.

_So far so good he thought._

The evening was slowly approaching as the first few rays of sunlight began to disappear and darkness began to cover the sky. Thankfully, no birthing had happen that day, only a few check-ups and baby cries drifting from inside the inner ward had given Severus any idea that children were present on this side of St. Mungo's. Though, he did have to chuckle a little when he overheard the Weasleys coming in because their twins somehow burned off their eyebrows in a _"prank gone wrong"_.

His thoughts drifted as the next hour approached. Severus had never been a man to think of having children or starting a family, but to be placed in such a family environment got him thinking. Of course, Lucius practically begged him to become Draco's godfather, but it must be different to actually have another human being to call your kin and child. The only time he considered the idea was when he and Lily-

_No. _

It was wrong to think of a married woman in such a way, especially after all they've been through together. It took him two years and some odd months after the "mudblood" incident to build up the courage to pull Lupin aside and ask him for help to somehow repair their friendship. Remus- as the wolf preferred, decided that Severus was obviously heart-broken due to their falling out and just asked him to keep an open mind as he approached Sirius and James.

**Flashback:**

While Severus harbored ill feelings towards the Marauders, he had to admit, Remus was the only one of the four that didn't seem to enjoy tormenting him for fun. Of course, he knew the reason behind Remus being so open in helping him. The man always felt guilt for letting the others bully him during their time at Hogwarts. While being a bystander and doing nothing to aid his suffering, the wolf did know when he had undeniable ignore a situation where he could have rescued Severus. For that, he could be forgiven.

After their first meeting and talk about how things would have been done and even finding out the two had a love for book collecting, Remus asked for two weeks before meeting Severus in a private room at Three Brooms. Of course, out of desperation, Severus agreed and bid him a fair well. Surprisingly, Remus owled him within the next week, stating that he had everything step up so they could work things out. Skeptical, Severus answered and the met not only Remus, but both Black and Potter. The two wore indifferent expressions on their faces, but remained calm as Severus entered. He took a seat next to Remus and ordered some tea before speaking.

"Remus, good to see you. I have your potions ready, my house elf will deliver them to you by the end of the day. Black. Potter," he said as he sipped some tea. While Remus's condition was rarely spoken, Severus knew that Remus preferred if people talked openly about it, instead of treating it like a disease. Ah yes, if only they became friends sooner.

"Thank you Severus, I'm hoping to work things out between the four of us today. Both Sirius and James have agreed to listen to what you have to say without interruptions and I hope you give them the same respect. And to sooth your curiosity, they both owe me big time for that prank they pulled on Slytherins at the end of the term our seventh year," Remus said in a light tone.

"So it was you two that painted _"slippery snakes are going to lose"_ on the common room walls, why am I not surprised?"

"Severus, focus."

"Well, alright. Potter, Black, I'm sure Remus has told you why I contacted him in the first place. I want to rekindle my friendship with Lily. I made a horrible mistake in the past, but I've come to terms with my thoughts on muggle borns and my feelings for Lily. While I did have feelings for her when we were at Hogwarts, I now know that those feelings were just lies. I adored that she cared for me and stuck up for me. When someone shows that they care for you, no matter if it is romantic or not, you will connect that feeling with warmth. The warmth I felt for Lily was simply mistaken for love. I was young and she was caring and kind, two things that I only felt from my mother," Severus said.

The latter part of the statement was of course, false, but while he disliked the idea of Lily and James being married, he would rather be her friend than a stranger. The looks on James's and Sirius's faces were mixtures of understanding and confusion.

"You make a valid point and while I still find you to be a slimy snake, you were good friends with Lily. The four of us were horrible to you in school and for that I apologize from the deepest pits of my heart. But I do have one concern, you carry the dark mark and are well, _dark_." Sirius said with a slightly concern and fierce facial expression. The man was a Black, but sided with the light. Than again, he was making a deal with three Marauders, go figure.

"You are correct, I wear the dark mark, but it does not mean I'm inherently evil. While some people believe that we are born inherently good or evil, I believe in tabula rasa. Not all of the Dark Lord's followers are evil monsters, Black. Yes, many of them are, many would kill in a blink of an eye for his approval. I find that with the right chooses, I can keep myself out of those situations."

"That doesn't make any sense, Snape. You are a Slytherin snake that bares the dark mark. You called my wife a blood mudblood, for heaven's sake! That would be like if I said I wasn't a Gryffindor even though I was sorted into the house." James said breaking the calming feeling of understanding with his anger.

"You're telling me that just because you were sorted into Gryffindor means you are a good person? Potter, there are Gryffindors that carry the dark mark, some Ravenclaws and even some Hufflepuffs, your house does not determine whether you are good or evil, you do. And aren't Gryffindors suppose to be light and heroic? I don't think picking on someone, even a _Slytherin_ is considered heroic. While you may think people are either good or evil, I believe in a grey area."

"Let me ask you this, if you and your future family was starving on the street, would you steal for them? Even though its for your family, it is considered _"bad"_ in your book right? You cannot justify my actions of leaning to the dark side because you believe that everything I do is inherently evil. Moral lines are not that simple Potter, there is no good and evil, there is perceptive. I can view something as completely unnecessary and you would put your life on the line for _the greater good_," Severus replied with a smirk.

"He's not wrong." Sirius said with a thoughtful look.

"While that tangent was not necessary, I might as well explanation why I'm a _"dark"_ wizard. I choose to side with the dark simply because they've treated me better than the light ever had. Majority of light wizards and witches treat Slytherins like crap, Potter. Do you know what it feels like to be labeled a dark wizard even before you even thought about joining the Dark Lord? If it wasn't for my treatment at Hogwarts, I'm sure I would have been neutral. Between the four Mauraders and the other houses looking out on Slytherins for possessing a talent in Dark Arts, its not that difficult to see why so many of us become Death Eaters."

"Would you rather be treated like a normal wizard that possesses skills that will be praised or continue to live a life of misery because of them. The choice when given is simple. Tell me, have you ever sit and thought about how no light teachers gave two shits about me? My treatment? Fuck no. The only person that ever cared about the way I felt was Lily. So I apologize if my lack of sympathy and compassion for the light is none. No one came to my aid Potter, Dumbledore didn't wipe my ass for me and said boys are going to be boys when I made a mistake. I served hours of detention whenever I decided to stand up for myself."

"The emotions of empathy and bitterness towards the light consumed me. And can you really blame me? When I decided to join the Dark Lord, it wasn't because I hated muggleborns, I just wanted to be around people that didn't treat me like crap. I wanted someone to protect from bullies like you and bystanders like Dumbledore, who spoke of _"the great good",_ yet turned a blind eye to a student in need," Severus finished with an angry look in his eyes.

"I- I don't know what to do say, Snape. Besides, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for how I treated you during our years at Hogwarts. I hope I can make it up to you one day, Sn- Severus. My Lily is very important to me and from what Remus and you have displayed today, I cannot deny that I should do something for my wife's happiness," James said with a saddened and soften face.

Severus was of course, surprised, he wasn't sure if Potter would break so easily, but what mattered was that he was going to talk to his Lily about patching things up. That's all that mattered. He knew that out of utter most respect, to keep his romantic feelings towards Lily non-existent. Pott- James was helping him rekindle the friendship rather than letting him suffer without Lily, so that was enough. He missed his best friend.

"I acknowledge your apologizes and I hope one day to accept them. I won't lie to you, it will take a long time for me to forgive you, but I promise to think of this as a brand new slant for the four of us," Severus said with what could only be called a smile.

The four men stayed at the pub for several hours talking about how James would approach Lily and even discussed literature, well Remus and Severus discussed it while Sirius and James talked about how boring it was. While the four of them were far away from being friends, a bond was forming. Whether light or dark, they were content with what they were sharing.

Shockingly enough, James decided to jump the gun and bring Severus back to his home so he could sort things out with Lily. Gryffindors always do things that they set their minds to. Of course, Severus was utterly frustration with the man, but better now than never. The four of them broomed to Godric's Hollow and was greeted with a slightly confused and angry red head.

"Lily, honey, please put your wand away. Let me explain. Remember when Remus said that he needed to talk to Sirius and me about some wolf stuff? Well, it was more than that. He really meant he needed to talk to us about Sna- Severus. The man approached him a few weeks ago asking for help to rekindle his friendship with you," James said as he got off from his broom.

Hearding this, Lily tucked her wand back into her sleeves and stared at the man she used to call her best friends. Merlin, it's only been two years and yet Severus really changed. He was a few inches taller and he grew his hair out, it looked like a shorter version of Malfoy's. She wondered why these three would stick up for someone they repeated picked on at school, but kept silent. Only nodding to say, continue.

"Lily, we were arses to Snape in school. We picked on him and treated him like crap just because we thought he was a dark wizard. We didn't even know that we were the reason why he choose to become a death eater. If it wasn't for us, maybe he could have been someone else. While we cannot take back seven years of misery, we can put in a good word for him. He is a changed man, please hear him out," Sirius said.

Now things were weird. Sirius sticking up for Severus? These three must really put in a lot of effort to listen to his story.

"Alright Severus, speak," Lily said staring up at the man who would rather be at the Dark Lord's mercy right now than face Lily Potter. Her eyes fucked him up every time, those green orbs pierced his soul without skipping a beat.

"Lily. I'm so sorry for calling you such a foul name. I now know that your blood does not determine how great of a witch you are. You determine how good of a witch you are. I should have known that when we were at Hogwarts and for that I cannot apologize enough. I hope you can give me a second chance to become your friend once again," Severus said as he looked into Lily's eyes. He closed his own for a bit, hoping, praying that she would forgive him.

He felt arms around him that he realized were Lily's. Mouthing a thank you to the three men that surrounded him, and receiving nods, he wrapped his own arms around Lily before releasing her from the hug. He was on thin ice, it was best not to get any closer than a hug from her. He needed to prove that he harbored no romantic feelings towards her if he was going to stick around.

"I don't know whether to hug you again or to hex you out of here. I've missed you Severus, you were a true friend. I forgive you, since my husband and his friends decided that you had a change of heart," Lily said with a smile on her face. She was as beautiful as he remembered. Vibrant green eyes, shy smile, pale porcelain skin. Although, she was a lot bumper than he remembered. His eyes grew as he noticed the small lump of her stomach. She was pregnant.

"I'm grateful for their help and the four of us have decided that we have all wronged each other in the past and need to start a clean slant with one another. I'm sure it will take a lot of work, but we all have our reasons to take a deep look at ourselves and what we stand for," Severus replied with a small smile.

"Lily, would should get you inside this whether isn't good for the baby. Join us for tea, it's always nice to talk about what's been happening in our lives since Hogwarts ended," James said ushering Lily into their home.

The feeling of jealousy crept into Severus's mind, but slowly stopped. He knew that James loved Lily and she was in good hands, that's all that mattered to him. Lily will always be the love of his life, but her happiness was more important than some petty jealousy feud from their younger years.

**Flaskback end. **

That was nearly seven months ago and Severus hadn't seen the four of them in almost five months. The Dark Lord was really cracking down on where his death eaters were through out the day. It was in his best intentions to not get caught at the home of a light wizard. Though, Lily did manage to slip him a letter telling him that she was going to deliver in July. But more importantly, she said she was going to have twins, two boys to be exact.

James and her decided that she wanted Sirius and him to be godfathers for the twins and if they decided to have another baby- Lily always wanted a little girl- for Remus to be her godfather. He was shocked that James wanted him to be a godfather, considering that they always joked that he was the bat of Slytherin. Snape enjoyed his moments of thinking of his luck, but of course all good things must come to an end as he saw a flash of familiar red hair and voices go into the delivery room.

It can't be her. Not Lily. The very thought of- No. The Prophecy said one child. Not two. She would be okay. Voices floated from the doors of the delivery room and a stiffened scream from Lily.

_"... thought she was having the babies at ...,"_

_"n't..since they're..."_

_"are you sure... safe..."_

The voices cut in and out, but Severus was glad for it. He pieced together the information, just as another mother was brought into the second delivery room. Alice Longbottom.

Severus kept silent as he heard both women cry out in pain. It was so difficult to listen to Lily's battle with the twins and Alice equally as difficult one with her child. He wasn't sure if it was a boy or girl, but he knew the prophecy called for one child, it must be hers. Alice gave birth first after an hour long screaming match with Lily. A baby boy called Neville was placed into her arms as they wheeled her into a private room. She looked so happy as Frank followed closely behind.

Lily continued for another 30 minutes before the first cries of her first born was picked up by Severus's ears. The child was only seven minutes older than his twin brother. Severus quickly sneaked into the delivery room as one of the more tired nurses rushed in. He stared at the two children laying in their tiny beds and could not help but think sadly to himself. Maybe if things have been different, it wouldn't be him under this cloak.

"What do you think we should name the children, Lily?" James said. The healing potion that Lily drank made her pain fade and well enough to choose names before sleep consumed her.

"Harry James Potter for our oldest son and Sirius will be his godfather. For our youngest, Sebastian Felix Potter and Severus as the godfather," Lily said as she smiled at the twins. Her two pride and joys. They look so cute sleeping in those beds. A nurse brushed aside Severus to give her a sleeping potion and she was out within the minute. His poor Lily.

James smiled as he wrote down the information and helped the nurses wheel the three Potters into a private room. Severus could only look from afar as he saw Lily and the twins move slowly away from site. Their fates laid in his hands as he began to formulate a plan to convince the Dark Lord that the Potter children were not the Chosen One/s. Knowing that a child my die, Severus apparated to the secret location of the Dark Lord.

**- End of Chapter 1 - **

**Author's Note:** What did you guys think of the first chapter of my new story? I know it's really late (at least in the states), but I wanted to publish this before I went to bed. Please review this if you would like more and I'm open to criticized.


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